Some Pre-turkey practice nuggets

The real 2006 MVP

I'll spare you a 2,000-word monologue on why Derek Jeter got screwed out of the American League MVP Award. Since no one will even remember who won the MVP in six months - heck, I already have to think for a minute before remembering who won this year's rookie of the year and Cy Youngs, and it's only been a week since those were announced - let's get right to the UConn football news. Randy Edsall spoke to some media at 1 p.m. and had a few updates.

All the guys who were questionable on Monday, aside from OL Mike Hicks, seem like they will either be OK to play on Saturday or pretty darn close. S M.J. Estep and CB Darius Butler have both practiced and should be ready. TB Terry Caulley also practiced and had no ill effects from hand surgery. TE Dan Murray practiced and was able to do everything. CB Ernest Cole told Edsall he's ready, but couldn't practice yesterday. Hicks is getting a little more functional, but isn't ready to play in a game yet.

QB D.J. Hernandez's wrist injury isn't affecting his throws. The problem has been taking the snap from under center and the impact on the wrist from that. He was listed as probable Monday, but this might be something to keep an eye on. Seems to be a cause of some concern.

With Larry Taylor out with a concussion, Robert McClain should handle punt returns. Darius Butler may be in the fold as long as his hamstring is healthy enough. Minus Taylor, Brandon McLean and Rob Theoudele, all out, UConn will use only three wide receivers on Saturday (Terrence Jeffers, Brad Kanuch and Brandon Young). Matt D'Agata and Marcus Easley are taking reps in practice, but won't play unless there's an injury. Andre Dixon and McClain will handle kickoffs.